{"id":113,"date":"2013-10-31T19:30:19","date_gmt":"2013-10-31T19:30:19","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/heartofthesoul\/?p=113"},"modified":"2013-10-31T19:30:19","modified_gmt":"2013-10-31T19:30:19","slug":"what-if-you-smiled-more","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/heartofthesoul\/2013\/10\/what-if-you-smiled-more.html","title":{"rendered":"What If You Smiled More?"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"images\"<\/a>I haven\u2019t been getting enough sleep. I\u2019ve been going to bed later and waking up earlier. I\u2019ve been dreaming about work projects and waking up thinking about my checklist. I even woke myself (and my husband) up the other night when I sat up and screamed (most likely about something work related).<\/p>\n

One of the effects this lack of sleep has had on me is that I wake up grumpy. Really grumpy. I wake up thinking about how everything that I have to do is taking me away from the one thing that I long to do: sleep.<\/p>\n

And I truly don\u2019t want to go through life in this way. I don\u2019t want to be among the many, many sweet souls who are walking through life in a daze because they are so overworked and so overstimulated and so over it all that they just can\u2019t imagine doing anything more than putting one foot in front of the other in order to just make it through another day.<\/p>\n

I want to feel joyful again. I want to embrace my life again. I want to get a full night\u2019s sleep again.<\/p>\n

This morning, I woke up in the grumpiest mood yet. My body didn\u2019t want me to get out of bed, but my brain was already awake and reminding me of all that I needed to do. \u201cNo time to sleep,\u201d it told me. \u201cThere\u2019s just too much to do.\u201d<\/p>\n

So I got up and staggered out of the bedroom and into the day ahead.<\/p>\n

Somewhere in the midst of this fog of sleepiness \u2013 somewhere between the bedroom and the bathroom \u2013 I heard a voice inside that said:<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat if you smiled more?\u201d\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

In a perfect world, I would say that it stopped me in my tracks \u2013 that I immediately heeded this wisdom, put on a big fat smile, did a little dance around the house, and embraced the day with open arms.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s not exactly what happened. In fact, that\u2019s not even close to what happened.<\/p>\n

I continued for the next couple of hours in my grumpy state. I continued to think about all that I needed to do and how there just wasn\u2019t enough time for it. I continued to worry that I was just one person and that I had more on my plate than one person could handle. I continued to walk around in a bad, bad mood.<\/p>\n

And then, while in the shower, I heard this voice loud and clear again with the same message:<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat if you smiled more?\u201d\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

This time, I listened. I didn\u2019t act on it right away, but I listened. And I thought about it.\u00a0What if I did smile more? How would my day change? How would my mood change? How would my life change?<\/p>\n

I’ve read studies before where participants were asked to smile, and their moods instantly improved. Something about the physiological response that the upward face muscles signal to the brain \u2013 causing it to react to happiness \u2013 actually causes you to feel happy.<\/p>\n

So I tried it. It felt ridiculous to smile when I was in such a bad mood, but I did it.<\/p>\n

I smiled. And I smiled some more. And some more.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

And my bad mood began to shift. My grumpiness began to dissipate.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Yes, I was still tired. And yes, I still had a mountain of tasks ahead of me.<\/p>\n

But I was happier. I was more joyful. I felt lighter.<\/p>\n

All because of a smile.<\/p>\n

What I found is that my \u201cOkay, fine, I\u2019ll try this, but I don\u2019t have to like it\u201d smile quickly turned into a genuine, \u201cI really have so much to be grateful for in this moment\u201d smile. My mood elevated, and my perspective shifted.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s so amazing how something so seemingly small as a smile can turn our entire life around.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

I definitely think that\u2019s something to smile about.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Hugs,<\/p>\n

Jodi<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"about
\n<\/a>Jodi Chapman is a bestselling author, an award-winning blogger, and a soulful community builder.\u00a0She lives her life with love and faith in the driver\u2019s seat, and she hopes to leave a trail of inspiration wherever she goes. She believes that we each have the ability to hear our soul\u2019s whisper and create our best lives. She would love to connect with you!<\/p>\n

Website<\/a>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u2665 \u00a0\u00a0Facebook<\/a>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u2665 \u00a0\u00a0Angel Fund<\/a>\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u2665 \u00a0\u00a0Free Ebook<\/a><\/p>\n

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 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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